Meaning of "shiva" : Ramana, Basava, Allama, Shankara, Patanjali

Veda & Upanishad - ವೇದ ಮತ್ತು ಉಪನಿಷತ್ ಗಳು

Rig Veda - ಋಗ್ವೇದ

ಕಸ್ಮೈ ದೇವಾಯ ಹವಿಷಾ ವಿಧೇಮ?
kasmai dEvAya havishA vidhEma
"Who is the god we must worship with oblations?"

bruhadaranyaka upanishad - ಬೃಹದಾರಣ್ಯಕ ಉಪನಿಷತ್

ನೈವೇಹ ಕಿಂಚನಾಗ್ರ ಅಸಿತ್
naivEha hinchanAgra asit
"nothing, nothing whatsoever, in the beginning"

katha upanishad - ಕಠೋಪನಿಷತ

Beyond the Great Soul (mahat) is the unmanifested. Beyond the unmanifested lies the Supreme Purusha.

Allama - ಅಲ್ಲಮ

ಅಂಡಜ ಒಡೆಯದಿಂದ ಮುನ್ನ ದ್ವೀಪಾದ್ವೀಪವಿಲ್ಲದ ಮುನ್ನ
ಅನಲ ಪವನರಿಲ್ಲದ ಮುನ್ನ ರವಿ ಚಂದ್ರರಿಲ್ಲದ ಮುನ್ನ
ಗುಹೇಶ್ವರಲಿಂಗವಿಲ್ಲದ ಮುನ್ನ

Before:
the primeval Egg cracked
and land and islands emerged
fire, wind, sun and moon arrived
Before even Guheshvara Linga existed
IT EXISTED.

Notes:
* 'brahmanda' the primeval Egg from which the Creator emerged
* The world is referred here as 'land and islands' in the primeval ocean
* Allama places a primeval Presence - 'It' - prior to, and therefore transcending Guheshvara


ಸತ್ಯವೂ ಅಲ್ಲ, ಅಸತ್ಯವೂ ಅಲ್ಲ, ಸಹಜವೂ ಇಲ್ಲ
ಅಸಹಜವೂ ಇಲ್ಲ, ನಾನು ಇಲ್ಲ, ನೀನೂ ಇಲ್ಲ,
ಇಲ್ಲ ಇಲ್ಲ ಎಂಬುವುದು ತಾನಿಲ್ಲ
ಗುಹೇಶ್ವರನೆಂಬುದು ತಾ ಬಯಲು.

It is not truth nor is it untruth
It is not real, nor is it unreal
It is not me, it is not you
It is nothing, it is not nothing
Guheshvara is bayalu!

Note: The use of oxymorons in this is a technique used in the past by Nagarjuna to express the incomprehensibility of God.


ಸಂಗಿಯಲ್ಲದ ನಿಸ್ಸಂಗಿಯಲ್ಲದ, ರೂಪಿಲ್ಲದ ನಿರೂಪಿಲ್ಲದ
ಸುಳುಹು ನೋಡಾ! ದೈತವಿಲ್ಲದ ಅದೈತವಿಲ್ಲದ, ಸೀಮೆಯಿಲ್ಲದ
ನಿಸ್ಸೀಮೆಯಿಲ್ಲದ ಸುಳುಹು ನೋಡಾ! ನಡೆಯಿಲ್ಲದ ನುಡಿಯಿಲ್ಲದ
ಒಡಲಿಲ್ಲದ ಸುಳುಹು ನೋಡಾ! ಕಡೆ ಮೊದಲು ಎಡೆದೆರಹಿಲ್ಲದ ಅಖಂಡ
ಗುಹೇಶ್ವರಲಿಂಗನಿರಾಳ ನಿಜೈಕ್ಯ ನೋಡಾ.

ಟಿಪ್ಪಣಿ: ಸುಳುಹು = ಒಂದು ಕ್ಷಣಮಾತ್ರಕ್ಕೆ ಕಾಣುವ ಚಿಹ್ನೆ; ಕಡೆ ಮೊದಲು ಎಡೆದೆರಹು = ಕಡೆ ಮತ್ತು ಮೊದಲಿನ ಮಧ್ಯ ಎಡವೇಇಲ್ಲದ.

It is not attached, nor is it separate
It has no form, nor is it formless
It is not two, nor is it one
It has no limits, nor is it limitless.
Behold for one flickering moment that which -
does not move
does not speak
does not have body
or beginning, end and middle
See the unbroken Continuum!
See Guheshvara Linga! See Peace ! See Truth!

Basavanna - ಬಸವಣ್ಣ

ಕಾಳಿಯ ಕಂಕಾಳದಿಂದ ಮುನ್ನ, ತ್ರಿಪುರಸಂಹಾರದಿಂದ ಮುನ್ನ
ಹರಿ ವಿರಂಚಿಗಳಿಂದ ಮುನ್ನ ಉಮೆಯ ಕಲ್ಯಾಣದಿಂದ ಮುನ್ನ
ಮುನ್ನ, ಮುನ್ನ, ಮುನ್ನ!
ಮಹಾದಾನಿ ಕೂಡಲಸಂಗಮದೇವಾ.

Before Kali arrived, and
Shiva wore a necklace of skulls.
Before Uma was married, and
Shiva destroyed the three cities.
Before there was a Vishnu and a Brahma.
Before! Before! Before!
My Lord, Kudala sangama Deva existed!

Note: This vachana again refers to the "unbroken continuum" Allama mentions about.

Chennabasavanna - ಚೆನ್ನಬಸವಣ್ಣ

ಕಳಾಧರ ಧರೆ ವಾರಿಧಿ ಸಹಿತ ಆರೂ ಇಲ್ಲದಂದು,
ಧರೆ ಅಂಬರ ವಾರಿಧಿ ಸಹಿತ ಆರೂ ಇಲ್ಲದಂದು
ಪ್ರಥಮನೊಬ್ಬನಿದ್ದನು ಓಂದನಂತ ಕಾಲ.
ನಿರವಯ ನಿರ್ಮಾಯನಾಗಿದ್ದನೊಂದು ಕೋಟ್ಯಾನುಕೋಟಿ ವರುಷ
ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಅನಾಗತವುಂಟು...
ಮತ್ತಂತಲ್ಲಿಯೆ ನಿರಾಳವ ಬೆರಸಿ, ಬಯಲು ಬೆಸಲಾಯಿತ್ತು ...

ಟಿಪ್ಪಣಿ: ಕಳಾಧರ = ಕಳೆ ಆಧಾರವಾದ ಧರೆ. ಅನಾಗತ = ಗೊತ್ತಿಲ್ಲದ, ಅಜ್ಞಾತ ವಸ್ತು

Before the earth arose from kale
before sky and oceans existed,
before anyone or anything existed.
There existed the First One,
the Unknown,
alone, timeless,
formless, but real, beyond doubt,
Who existed for millions and millions of years...
And - then and there - bayalu started to create ...

Note: Chennabasavanna implies that shunya transcends kale.

Origin of word SHIVA:

'Shiva' is derived from 'shaya' which means 'to lie or abide in' and 'va' which means 'a dwelling'; in other words, 'Shiva' is the One 'in whom all things lie or dwell'.

Shankara - ಶಂಕರ

"prajnanam brahma"
ಪ್ರಜ್ಙಾನಾಂ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮ
Brahaman is knowledge


"tat tvam asi"
ತತ್ ತ್ವಂ ಅಸಿ
You are that


"ಅಹಂ brahmaasmiI"
ಅಹಂ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮಾಸ್ಮಿ

I am Brahman

"ayam atman brahman"
ಅಯಂ ಆತ್ಮನ್ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮನ್

Soul and the Self are the same

Ramana - ರಮಣ

Ramana suggested the path of Self-Enquiry:

When a thought arises, search for the root of the thought. It is the "I-thought" (thought of I-ness) that is at the root. "I-thought" is the primeval thought. From there, question your self "Who am I?". Are you the "body"? "mind"? "ego"? Go within to find the source of your self. Then you realise that you are not different from the self.

Patanjali - ಪತಂಜಲಿ

ಕ್ಲೇಶ ಕರ್ಮ ವಿಪಾಕ ಆಶಯೈ ಅಪರಾಮೃಷ್ಟ: ಪುರುಷವಿಶೇಷ ಈಶ್ವರ: ||
klEsha karma vipAka Ashayai aparAmRuShTaha purusha vishESha Ishvaraha ||

"klEsha" - afflictions
"karma" - actions
"vipAka" - fruit of the actions
"Ashaya" - past impressions
"aparAmRuShTaha" ( ಅಪರಾಮೃಷ್ಟ: ) - Untouched, Unaffected

One who is untouched, unaffected by afflictions, actions, fruits of the actions and past impressions is "Ishvara"

This subtly suggests that one such person can not identify with the body, or the mind or the ego. Because, the moment the person identifies with the body or the mind or the ego, afflictions, actions, etc appear. Such a person identifies with that substance that is beneath all these - that one that has never changed, that one that is not going to change either, the one that is present in everything - the consciousness, the self.

References:

1. Sections on Veda, Allama, Basavanna, Channabasavanna, Shiva are from the book: "Allama Prabhu - a study in philosophy with translation of poems - by Basrur Subba Rao - Shri Mangesh Publishers", ISBN 978-81-904465-0-1
2. Shankara - Sourced from the internet
3. Ramana - from "The mind of Ramana - by Arthur Osborne"
4. Patanjali - "Patanjali Yoga Sutra"